My latest summer read is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. The story explores the meaning of “quality,” and ties in motorcyle maintenance with values and thought. In the story, a father goes on a motorcycle journey with his son. During the long rides he delves on these Chautauquas, where he talks about lessons he’s learned throughout his life. I dont read much philosophy, so some of of the dialogue is over my head. I try to get the main points, though.

What I have taken out of the book, thus far, is that I need to put more care into my own bike. I’ve been riding it since Feb, and I haven’t done anything to it. I’ve noticed that I need to clean the chain and make sure it’s well oiled. I also need to get my ratchet set from home, so that I can make my own adjustments to the gears and settings. One time when I was riding, I changed gears and the chain just locked up. I examined the chain and thought “that doesn’t look right.” It was in direct contact with the frame and this metal strip. I switched back to a lower gear and it was ok. But to correct this, I need to tighten the pedal crank. Until, I get this done, I’m not riding it.

I could take it back to the bike shop and have them do it. I have a year of free adjustments, but they would charge me to clean the chain and grease. I figure I should do this kind of thing myself, so that I know how to do it, and how often. I should get into better touch with my bike when it is making noises and needs care. So, that’s that.

The book got me thinking about other aspects of my own life, but I’ll save that for another time.